Southern Minnesota police chief faces sexual assault charges

The police chief in a small southern Minnesota town has been charged with criminal sexual conduct.

Jason Wyatt Mindrup, who has served as the Brownsdale police chief and its only police officer for about a decade, was charged Tuesday with two felonies, accused of sexually assaulting a woman in August. Brownsdale, a town of about 680 people in Mower County, is about 40 miles southwest of Rochester.

Mindrup, 42, of Waltham, has been on paid leave since September after the City Council was informed about the investigation by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. The City Council is expected to be updated about the charges at its next meeting on Nov. 4, Brownsdale Mayor Dave Pike said Thursday.

According to the charges, the woman was at the Cheers Bar in Waltham on Aug. 30 with another man and Mindrup. She left the bar after 11:30 p.m. and walked to a nearby business, where she worked. The woman told investigators that Mindrup drove to the business and offered to give her a ride back to the bar, saying he was concerned for her safety.

The complaint states that Mindrup drove 2 miles east of Waltham and sexually assaulted the woman. She told investigators that Mindrup drove her back to the bar, which was closed. She then walked to a friend's house nearby and called 911.

The Mower County Sheriff's Office handled the initial investigation and then turned it over to the BCA. The Olmsted County attorney's office reviewed the investigation and filed the charges in Mower County.

Mindrup, who couldn't be reached for comment, is charged with criminal sexual conduct in the first degree and criminal sexual conduct in the third degree.

Mary Lynn Smith is a general assignment reporter for the Star Tribune. She previously covered St. Paul City Hall and Ramsey County. Before that, she worked in Duluth where she covered local and state government and business. She frequently has written about the outdoors.